Great news for sporting enthusiasts!

Disabled people in Peterborough will have more chances to get involved in sport after Inspire Peterborough (an arm of ‘Disability Peterborough’ – a local registered disability charity), received £277,720 of funding in April from Sport England’s Inclusive Sport fund. The project is one of 44 across England that will benefit from £8.06 million of National Lottery investment from Sport England to open up more opportunities for disabled people to play sport.

Inspire Peterborough will use its funding to become the leading disability sporting partnership in Peterborough, improving the mental and physical health and well-being of everyone involved. It will be a coordinating hub, enabling effective and creative partnerships between disabled people, their families and carers, charities and sporting organisations, in order to increase the numbers of people participating in disability sporting and leisure activities. Building upon the legacy of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, they will support and inspire all disabled people to have better life outcomes through participating in sport, leisure activities and volunteering.

They aim to be:

First point of contact for anyone interested in disability sports or leisure activities.

Signpost to opportunities, advice and information.

Provider of a service for anyone who is interested in volunteering.

What will Inspire do?

Bring together local sports providers and venues under a unified ‘brand’.

Support clubs to develop pathways to success.

Bid for funding, increase capacity and improve facilities.

Provide opportunities for those wishing to improve their physical and mental health and well being.

Provide volunteering opportunities for able bodied and disabled people.

Encourage and enable competitive sporting opportunities locally and throughout the region.

“I am delighted to be able to announce the news that Inspire Peterborough has been successful in bidding to Sport England for funding to deliver a range of disability sporting opportunities in Peterborough. It has been a huge privilege to have been involved with the Inspire project right from the beginning. For me, this project is about making a reality the inspiration we all felt after the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. With the Sport England support we now have, we are well on course to deliver our vision. We want to make Peterborough a city where a wide choice of disability sporting and recreational activities is integrated within our city-wide offer. We are supported by local people with disabilities, their families and carers, who are very much part of this project and we know they are keen to take advantage of the new activities being generated through Inspire’s work”. Councillor Irene Walsh, Cabinet Member for Community Cohesion, Safety and Public Health

The number of disabled people playing sport regularly is on the rise. In December 2013, Sport England’s Active People Survey – an annual, in-depth measure of the nation’s sporting habits – revealed that a record number of disabled people in England now play sport each week. However, non-disabled people are still twice as likely to play sport as disabled people (39.2 per cent compared to 18.5 per cent) which is why Sport England continues to focus attention and investment to address this imbalance.

Sport England‘s Inclusive Sport Fund supports programmes that aim to increase the number of disabled people playing sport. Since the fund launched, £17.1 million has been invested in 88 projects that make sport a viable lifestyle choice for disabled people. As well as funding disability sport programmes, Sport England also funds equipment. In addition to today’s £8.06 million announcement, Sport England also recently awarded £1 million to 141 clubs across England to help them buy equipment to open up sport to disabled people.

For more information please click here to visit Inspire Peterborough’s website or contact them on the details below: